CasinoMan

Pai Gow Poker uses a standard deck of 52 cards plus one joker. A maximum of six players sit around the table along with the dealer.

The object of the game is quite simple: to beat the banker. The banker can be the dealer, another player at the table, or a player-dealer “team.”

To do so, you make two poker hands with the seven cards that are dealt:

1. A five-card “high” hand (also known as the back hand/big hand)
2. A two-card “low” hand (also known as the front hand/small hand)

Your high hand must beat your low hand. For example, if your low hand is a pair of fives, your high hand must be better than a pair of fives.

Once you set your hands, the dealer reveals them along with the banker’s hands. There are then 3 possible outcomes:

1. The player wins both hands and wins their bet.
2. The dealer wins both hands and the player loses their bet.
3. The player wins one hand and the dealer wins the other, in which case the hand is a push and no money exchanges hands (except the commission–more on this later).

Ties go to the dealer in Pai Gow Poker. For example, if both you and the dealer have a low hand of A-K, the dealer wins that hand.

Our rating – 6.9/10

Craps is a game where many bettors get to stake their chips on a roll of the dice. The table layout makes the game seem a little confusing at first, but the rules are easy to pick up with experience. Before stepping up to a table, read about the kinds of bets available and how a round of craps play out. When you’re ready to bet, practice proper etiquette to be a good player. Join in with enthusiasm as you cheer for everyone at the table to beat the house.

Craps really isn’t complicated when you remember that the entire point is on the sum on a pair of dice. One player rolls the dice, typically trying to get a 7 or 11. If they don’t get this number on the first roll, they establish a “point” number that they have to roll again before rolling a 7.

• Generally, you bet with the table in the hopes that the player rolls the number they need. There are also some options for betting against the table, meaning the player rolls a losing number.
• On the first roll, called a come-out roll, 7 and 11 are winners. The numbers 2, 3, and 12 are called craps numbers and mean bettors lose.
• The winning and losing numbers vary depending on the stage of the game. If the player establishes a point, 7 becomes a losing number.

The dealer lays a disk on the table to keep track of the game. If you see the disk flipped to the black side with the word “OFF,” you know a new round is starting. On the first roll, the come-out roll, a 7 or an 11 means everyone who bet on the pass line wins. A 2, 3, or 12 means everyone loses.

• The pass line is the most basic element in craps betting, so it’s the best place to start when learning the game. A new round cannot begin until someone places a bet on the pass.
• Numbers like 4, 5, and 6 are neither wins nor losses. The rolled number becomes known as the point, and the game moves to the next phase of play.
• Another option is to bet on the don’t pass line. If you take this option, you’re betting against everyone else. You win if the shooter rolls a 2 or 3 but lose if they roll a 7 or 11.

The point is the number the player rolled if they didn’t win or lose on the come-out roll. The potential point numbers are 4, 5, 6, 8, 9, or 10. The dealer flips the disk to the white “ON” side, and then the shooter continues to roll the dice in the hopes of rolling the point number again. Rolling a 7 means a loss.

• The pass line bets stay on the board until the round is over. You win your pass bet if the player rolls their point number.
• For example, when the point number is an 8, the shooter tries to roll an 8. If the shooter rolls a 7, all pass line bets lose. Play continues until the shooter rolls one of these numbers.
• If the shooter rolls the point number, play starts over with new pass bets. If a 7 comes up, the same thing happens but someone else has to roll the dice.

Our rating – 7.7/10

Bingo rules are extremely straightforward. You purchase a bingo card, or a few bingo cards if you want to have more chances or even a full strip of cards which contain all numbers on them so you can also try to win the jackpot.

The most common card is a 5×5 grid used in 75-ball bingo played mainly in the US, which will have the word BINGO written at the top. The first column will have numbers between 1 and 15 under the ‘B’, the second column will show the numbers between 16 and 30 under the ‘I’, third column will have numbers between 31 and 45 under the ‘N’, fourth column under ‘G’ will have numbers from 46 to 60, and the last column under ‘O’ will have numbers 61 to 75. There is also free space in the middle of the grid.

In a live hall, a caller will call out numbers, and in an online casino the number will appear and you can either mark the card yourself, or it can be marked automatically. You need to mark off any number that is called out that also appeared on your card. You win when you are the first to have five numbers marked off in a row horizontally, vertically, or diagonally, or in a winning pattern pre-determined by the casino.

Bingo is an intergenerational game which can bring nostalgia to many people. It’s played from the backseat of a car to the kitchen table amongst family, in the loud and atmospheric bingo hall, to retirement homes, and also played by people of all ages online.

In actual fact, bingo first started out as a lottery game in Italy in the 16th century and went by the name of Lo Giuoco del Lotto d’Italia. From Italy, it spread like most other games through the neighboring countries of France and Germany, and was exported to the United States in the 19th century with the upsurge of European immigration to the Americas. Once the game reached the United States it was named ‘beano’ and played in county fairs across the country by people of all ages – it was a family game, and considered helpful for children to learn how to count. Beano was played with numbered wooden disks which would be called out once pulled from a large box. The numbers on the cards would then be marked with a bean.

Our rating – 7.9/10